Acclaimed barbecue restaurant won't let you pay someone to hold your place in line

Acclaimed BBQ restaurant won't let someone pay to hold your place

Franklin Barbecue was swift to remind everyone of its policy on paid line-waiting services.
Photo courtesy of Franklin Barbecue

The line that wraps around Franklin Barbecue in Austin is almost as legendary as the brisket itself. It's also really long — and folks will do almost anything to skip the line and get straight to the meat.

Last week, an entrepreneurial middle schooler's premium line waiting service, BBQ Fast Pass, garnered major buzz. Desmond, the enterprising kid behind the business, will wait in the Franklin Barbecue line for customers for a base fee of $50.

But over the weekend, Franklin Barbecue released a firm statement that puts the kibosh on groups paying services for lots o' brisket without the wait.

According to its Twitter account, Franklin Barbecue doesn't allow one person to hold a place in line for a group. Those who violate the policy get banned from the East Austin hot spot.

Our policy for peeps who pay a line waiter - we don't allow 1 person to hold place for a group eating here. 1 person paid = 1 to-go order

As long as Desmond adheres to the policy, BBQ Fast Pass will remain in good standing with Franklin. And that's a good thing for one smart kid and a lot of hungry barbecue fans: BBQ Fast Pass is booked solid for the rest of June.